Quick Answer: 2026 Audi RS Q8
The 2026 Audi RS Q8 is Audi Sport's top performance SUV, sold in the US as a single configuration called "RS Q8 performance," from $138,300 before the $1,395 destination charge. It pairs a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 (631 hp, 627 lb-ft) with an 8-speed Tiptronic automatic, standard quattro all-wheel drive with a sport rear differential, and standard front and rear ceramic brakes, reaching 60 mph in an Audi-quoted 3.4 seconds. MY2026 vehicles include Audi Signature Care, three years of complimentary factory maintenance, and the RS Q8 is in stock now at Audi Queens in Flushing.
Total price, including every dealer-imposed charge: $139,870 all in for the RS Q8 performance. That total includes the $1,395 destination charge and the $175 documentation fee (an optional dealer charge, not a New York State or DMV fee) on top of a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $138,300; it excludes state and local taxes, title, registration, and any optional equipment.
The top of the Q8 family, not a bigger SQ8
Audi builds three distinct versions of the Q8 body, and the RS Q8 is the one built by Audi Sport rather than the regular product line. The base Q8 runs a turbocharged V6 for efficiency, the SQ8 steps up to a 500-hp V8 for a genuinely quick everyday performance SUV, and the RS Q8 goes further again: the same twin-turbo V8 architecture tuned to 631 hp and 627 lb-ft, standard ceramic brakes front and rear (a feature most rivals in this class charge extra for), and a chassis retuned specifically for it, not just borrowed from the SQ8 and left alone. Audi's own marketing calls it the most powerful internal combustion engine ever fitted to an RS vehicle, and the number backs that up: 3.4 seconds to 60 mph, factory-quoted, with independent track testing reporting it can run even quicker.
Where the SQ8 splits into two trims, the RS Q8 doesn't. There's one configuration for the US market, officially named "RS Q8 performance," and the choices from there are option packages and colors, not a trim ladder. That's simpler shopping than the rest of the Audi Queens lineup, but it also means the sticker price reflects a fully-equipped performance SUV from the first vehicle off the line, not an entry point to something more expensive.
What's standard on every RS Q8
RS Q8 performance — from $138,300. The full Audi Sport treatment: 631 hp, quattro with a standard sport rear differential, ceramic brakes, Electromechanical Active Roll Stabilization, RS-tuned adaptive air suspension, 23-inch wheels, Sport seats plus in Valcona leather, and the 12.3-inch virtual cockpit plus with dedicated RS display modes, all included, no options list required to get the real thing.
Standard ceramic brakes and a sport rear differential come on every RS Q8, not as an upcharge.
The engine, the drivetrain, and the number everyone asks about
Every RS Q8 shares the same 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8, the same 8-speed Tiptronic torque-converter automatic (not the dual-clutch S tronic gearbox found on smaller Audis like the A3 or Q5), and the same standard quattro all-wheel drive with a sport rear differential built in, not gated behind a package the way it is on the SQ8. Active roll stabilization, electric motors integrated into the front and rear stabilizer bars that actively resist body lean in corners, comes standard too, a piece of hardware that's an option on plenty of rivals. EPA rates the combination at 14 city, 20 highway, 16 combined on required premium fuel, an honest number for 631 horsepower moving a full-size SUV, and not the figure that decides this purchase either way.
Does the RS Q8 have a Lamborghini engine?
It's one of the most-searched questions about this car, and the honest answer sits between the two extremes people expect. The RS Q8's twin-turbo V8 shares its architecture and Volkswagen Group platform lineage with the engine family used in the Lamborghini Urus, both are built within the same corporate engine program, but the RS Q8's specific tuning, calibration, and power figures are Audi Sport's own work, not a badge-swapped Lamborghini unit dropped into an SUV. Related, yes, in the way cousins share a grandparent. Identical, no.
Is the RS Q8 being discontinued?
No, and the confusion has a specific, traceable source. Audi's own configurator has already rolled forward to 2027 pricing while Audi Queens is still actively selling and titling 2026 models, a normal model-year transition, not an exit. The actual discontinued nameplate people are thinking of is the separate, all-electric Audi Q8 e-tron, which Audi pulled from the US lineup in 2025. The gas V8 RS Q8 covered on this page is a different car entirely and continues into MY2027 with the same platform and largely the same equipment.
Built for how this borough actually drives
The 12.3-inch virtual cockpit plus includes dedicated RS Performance and RS Sport display modes.
A 631-hp SUV sounds like a track toy until it's the car merging onto the Van Wyck ahead of someone who wasn't paying attention. The RS-tuned adaptive air suspension that keeps this thing flat through a cloverleaf on-ramp also lifts for a steep driveway or a pothole-scarred stretch of Northern Boulevard, and the standard top view camera with virtual 360-degree coverage earns its keep threading a full-size SUV into a tight spot on a crowded Flushing block. The tradeoff nobody talks about enough: 23-inch wheels ride on genuinely short sidewalls, which means a hard hit on the BQE or the LIE asks more of the car, and the driver, than the same pothole would on a base Q8's smaller standard wheels.
What Audi Queens buyers of the Q8 family say
No RS Q8-specific reviews exist yet in the dealership's public review history, it's a low-volume, recently-launched model, but the pattern from buyers of its closest siblings is consistent and worth reading before a visit built around this much car. One SQ8 Prestige buyer who shopped dealers well outside the five boroughs before landing here described a salesperson who "took his time and explained me everything before buying the car," adding that the "no sales pressure" approach was exactly what closed the deal (Kunal S.). On the service side, one recent visitor whose car needed extra time put it this way: "My Service Advisor, Jhael Rodriguez, was exceptional. He was professional, knowledgeable, attentive, and incredibly patient with every question I had" (Blessed K.). That's the team that will also be looking after a car with ceramic brakes and a twin-turbo V8.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the 2026 Audi RS Q8 cost?
$138,300 MSRP before the $1,395 destination charge, for the single "RS Q8 performance" configuration sold in the US. The pricing & leasing guide covers what that becomes after New York taxes and fees.
Why does the RS Q8 only have one trim?
Unlike the Q8 (three trims) or SQ8 (two trims), Audi sells the RS Q8 as a single, fully-equipped configuration, "RS Q8 performance," is the trim name itself, not a tier above a base model that doesn't exist in the US. Buyer choice comes from option packages, wheel design, and color rather than a trim ladder.
How does the RS Q8 compare to the SQ8?
Both share the twin-turbo V8 architecture and the same body, but the RS Q8 makes more power (631 hp versus 500 hp), adds standard ceramic brakes and active roll stabilization, and drops the 0-60 time from about 4.0 seconds to 3.4. The SQ8 is the quicker path into V8 performance at a lower price; the RS Q8 is the version built with no compromise on the performance hardware.
Why is the Audi RS Q8 so expensive?
The price reflects what's standard rather than optional elsewhere: ceramic brakes front and rear, a sport rear differential, active roll stabilization, RS-tuned air suspension, and Sport seats plus in Valcona leather all come included, not as an options-sheet upcharge on top of a cheaper base price.
Where can I see one in Flushing?
At Audi Queens on College Point Blvd, where the RS Q8 is filterable alongside the Q8 and SQ8 family. Book a test drive to feel the difference the standard ceramic brakes and air suspension make before deciding.
The bottom line
The RS Q8 isn't a decision between trims, it's a decision to buy the fully-loaded version of Audi's performance flagship SUV outright. The 631-hp V8, the standard ceramic brakes, and the sport rear differential are the car, not an upsell path toward it, and Audi Queens has it in inventory now with the same Signature Care coverage as every other 2026 Audi.
All 2026 Audi RS Q8 guides
Manufacturer’s suggested retail price excludes the $1,395 destination charge and the $175 documentation fee (an optional dealer charge, not a New York State or DMV fee), along with taxes, title, registration, and options; the dealer sets the actual selling price. Equipment, packages, and availability can change with configuration and production timing; confirm current specs with Audi Queens. Audi Signature Care terms per Audi of America's published program for MY2026 vehicles. Customer quotes are excerpts from public Google reviews of Audi Queens; quotes referencing the SQ8 and dealership service experience are noted as such and are not presented as RS Q8-specific testimonials.